Removed idiomatic constructs from interactive figures docs (matplotlib#17471)

* cleaned up idioms, restructured the code example, stripped down some langauge

Co-authored-by: Thomas A Caswell <[email protected]>
Co-authored-by: David Stansby <[email protected]>
Co-authored-by: Elliott Sales de Andrade <[email protected]>

Author: 4 people

doc/devel/documenting_mpl.rst

@@ -111,6 +111,12 @@ it, use
 .. code-block:: sh
 
    make SPHINXOPTS= html
+   
+On Windows the arguments must be at the end of the statement:
+
+.. code-block:: bat
+
+   make html SPHINXOPTS=
 
 You can use the ``O`` variable to set additional options:
 
@@ -121,8 +127,12 @@ You can use the ``O`` variable to set additional options:
 Multiple options can be combined using e.g. ``make O='-j4 -Dplot_gallery=0'
 html``.
 
-On Windows, options needs to be set as environment variables, e.g. ``set O=-W
---keep-going -j4 & make html``.
+On Windows, either use the format shown above or set options as environment variables, e.g.:
+
+.. code-block:: bat
+
+   set O=-W --keep-going -j4 
+   make html 
 
 .. _writing-rest-pages:
 

doc/users/interactive.rst

@@ -9,22 +9,21 @@
 .. toctree::
 
 
-When working with data it is often invaluable to be able to interact
-with your plots. In many cases the built in pan/zoom and mouse-location
-tools are sufficient, but you can also use the Matplotlib event system
-to build customized data exploration tools.
+When working with data, interactivity can be invaluable. The pan/zoom and
+mouse-location tools built into the Matplotlib GUI windows are often sufficient, but
+you can also use the event system to build customized data exploration tools.
 
 Matplotlib ships with :ref:`backends <what-is-a-backend>` binding to
 several GUI toolkits (Qt, Tk, Wx, GTK, macOS, JavaScript) and third party
 packages provide bindings to `kivy
 <https://github.com/kivy-garden/garden.matplotlib>`__ and `Jupyter Lab
-<https://github.com/matplotlib/ipympl>`__.  For the figures to be
-"live" the GUI event loop will need to be integrated with your prompt. The
-simplest way is to use IPython (see :ref:`below <ipython-pylab>`).
+<https://github.com/matplotlib/ipympl>`__.  For the figures to be responsive to
+mouse, keyboard, and paint events, the GUI event loop needs to be integrated
+with an interactive prompt. We recommend using IPython (see :ref:`below <ipython-pylab>`).
 
-The `.pyplot` module provides functions for explicitly creating
-Figures that include interactive tools, a toolbar, a tool-tip, and
-:ref:`key bindings <key-event-handling>` ready to go:
+The `.pyplot` module provides functions for explicitly creating figures
+that include interactive tools, a toolbar, a tool-tip, and
+:ref:`key bindings <key-event-handling>`:
 
 `.pyplot.figure`
     Creates a new empty `.figure.Figure` or selects an existing figure
@@ -36,13 +35,15 @@ Figures that include interactive tools, a toolbar, a tool-tip, and
 through `.pyplot.gcf` and a notion of "The Current Axes" accessed
 through `.pyplot.gca`.  Almost all of the functions in `.pyplot` pass
 through the current `.Figure` / `.axes.Axes` (or create one) as
-appropriate.  Matplotlib keeps a reference to all of the open figures
-created this way so they will not be garbage collected.  You can close
-and deregister `.Figure`\s from `.pyplot` individually via
-`.pyplot.close` or close all open figures via ``plt.close('all')``.
+appropriate.
 
-For discussion of how the integration of the event loops and Matplotlib's event
-system work under the hood see:
+Matplotlib keeps a reference to all of the open figures
+created via `pyplot.figure` or `pyplot.subplots` so that the figures will not be garbage
+collected. `.Figure`\s can be closed and deregistered from `.pyplot` individually via
+`.pyplot.close`; all open `.Figure`\s can be closed via ``plt.close('all')``.
+
+
+For more discussion of Matplotlib's event system and integrated event loops, please read:
 
 .. toctree::
     :maxdepth: 1
@@ -57,64 +58,58 @@ IPython integration
 ===================
 
 We recommend using IPython for an interactive shell.  In addition to
-all of its features (improved tab-completion, magics,
-multiline editing, etc), it also ensures that the GUI toolkit event
-loop is properly integrated with the command line (see
-:ref:`cp_integration`).  To configure the integration and enable
-:ref:`interactive mode <controlling-interactive>` use the
-``%matplotlib`` magic
+all of its features (improved tab-completion, magics, multiline editing, etc),
+it also ensures that the GUI toolkit event loop is properly integrated
+with the command line (see :ref:`cp_integration`).
+
+In this example, we create and modify a figure via an IPython prompt.
+The figure displays in a Qt5Agg GUI window. To configure the integration
+and enable :ref:`interactive mode <controlling-interactive>` use the
+``%matplotlib`` magic:
 
 .. highlight:: ipython
 
 ::
-
-   user@machine:~ $ ipython
-   Python 3.8.2 (default, Apr  8 2020, 14:31:25)
-   Type 'copyright', 'credits' or 'license' for more information
-   IPython 7.13.0 -- An enhanced Interactive Python. Type '?' for help.
-
    In [1]: %matplotlib
    Using matplotlib backend: Qt5Agg
 
    In [2]: import matplotlib.pyplot as plt
 
-Calling
+Create a new figure window:
 
 ::
 
    In [3]: fig, ax = plt.subplots()
 
-will pop open a window for you and
+
+Add a line plot of the data to the window:
 
 ::
 
    In [4]: ln, = ax.plot(range(5))
 
-will show your data in the window.  If you change something about the
-line, for example the color
+Change the color of the line from blue to orange:
 
 ::
 
    In [5]: ln.set_color('orange')
 
-it will be reflected immediately. If you wish to disable this behavior
-use
+If you wish to disable automatic redrawing of the plot:
 
 ::
 
    In [6]: plt.ioff()
 
-and
+If you wish to re-enable automatic redrawing of the plot:
 
 ::
 
    In [7]: plt.ion()
 
-re-enable it.
 
-With recent versions of ``Matplotlib`` and ``IPython`` it is
-sufficient to import `matplotlib.pyplot` and call `.pyplot.ion`, but
-using the magic is guaranteed to work regardless of versions.
+In recent versions of ``Matplotlib`` and ``IPython``, it is
+sufficient to import `matplotlib.pyplot` and call `.pyplot.ion`.
+Using the ``%`` magic is guaranteed to work in all versions of Matplotlib and IPython.
 
 
 .. highlight:: python
@@ -146,45 +141,43 @@ Interactive mode controls:
 
 - whether created figures are automatically shown
 - whether changes to artists automatically trigger re-drawing existing figures
-- whether `.pyplot.show` returns immediately or after all of the
-  figures have been closed when given no arguments
-
+- when `.pyplot.show()` returns if given no arguments: immediately, or after all of the figures have been closed
 
-If in interactive mode, then:
+If in interactive mode:
 
-- newly created figures will be shown immediately
-- figures will automatically redraw on change
-- pyplot.show will return immediately by default
+- newly created figures will be displayed immediately
+- figures will automatically redraw when elements are changed
+- `pyplot.show()` displays the figures and immediately returns
 
-If not in interactive mode then:
-
-- newly created figures and changes to figures will
-  not be reflected until explicitly asked to be
-- pyplot.show runs the GUI event loop and does not return until all of
-  the plot windows are closed
+If not in interactive mode:
 
+- newly created figures and changes to figures are not displayed until
+   * `.pyplot.show()` is called
+   * `.pyplot.pause()` is called
+   * `.FigureCanvasBase.flush_events()` is called
+- `pyplot.show()` runs the GUI event loop and does not return until all the plot windows are closed
 
 If you are in non-interactive mode (or created figures while in
 non-interactive mode) you may need to explicitly call `.pyplot.show`
-to bring the windows onto your screen.  If you only want to run the
-GUI event loop for a fixed amount of time you can use `.pyplot.pause`.
-This will both block the progress of your code (as if you had called
-`time.sleep`), ensure the current window is shown and if needed
-re-drawn, and run the GUI event loop (so the windows are "live" for
-interaction) for the specified period of time.
-
-Being in "interactive mode" is orthogonal to the GUI event loop being
-integrated with your command prompt.  If you use `pyplot.ion`, but
-have not arranged for the event loop integration, your figures will
-appear but will not be "live" while the prompt is waiting for input.
+to display the windows on your screen.  If you only want to run the
+GUI event loop for a fixed amount of time, you can use `.pyplot.pause`.
+This will block the progress of your code as if you had called
+`time.sleep`, ensure the current window is shown and re-drawn if needed,
+and run the GUI event loop for the specified period of time.
+
+The GUI event loop being integrated with your command prompt and
+the figures being in interactive mode are independent of each other.
+If you use `pyplot.ion` but have not arranged for the event loop integration,
+your figures will appear but will not be interactive while the prompt is waiting for input.
 You will not be able to pan/zoom and the figure may not even render
 (the window might appear black, transparent, or as a snapshot of the
 desktop under it).  Conversely, if you configure the event loop
-integration, displayed figures will be "live" while waiting for input
-at the prompt, regardless of pyplot's "interactive mode".  In either
-case, the figures will be "live" if you use
-``pyplot.show(block=True)``, `.pyplot.pause`, or run the the GUI main
-loop in some other way.
+integration, displayed figures will be responsive while waiting for input
+at the prompt, regardless of pyplot's "interactive mode".
+
+No matter what combination of interactive mode setting and event loop integration,
+figures will be responsive if you use ``pyplot.show(block=True)``, `.pyplot.pause`, or run
+the GUI main loop in some other way.
 
 
 .. warning::
@@ -201,7 +194,7 @@ Default UI
 
 
 The windows created by :mod:`~.pyplot` have an interactive toolbar with navigation
-buttons and a readout of where the cursor is in dataspace.  A number of
+buttons and a readout of the data values the cursor is pointing at.  A number of
 helpful keybindings are registered by default.
 
 
@@ -240,8 +233,7 @@ Preserve aspect ratio              hold **CONTROL** when panning/zooming with mo
 Other Python prompts
 ====================
 
-If you can not or do not want to use IPython, interactive mode works
-in the vanilla python prompt
+Interactive mode works in the default Python prompt:
 
 
 .. sourcecode:: pycon
@@ -265,11 +257,11 @@ Jupyter Notebooks / Lab
    using an interactive backend.  The default backend in notebooks,
    the inline backend, is not.  `~ipykernel.pylab.backend_inline`
    renders the figure once and inserts a static image into the
-   notebook when the cell is executed.  The images are static and can
-   not be panned / zoomed, take user input, or be updated from other
+   notebook when the cell is executed.  Because the images are static, they
+   can not be panned / zoomed, take user input, or be updated from other
    cells.
 
-To get interactive figures in the 'classic' notebook or jupyter lab
+To get interactive figures in the 'classic' notebook or Jupyter lab,
 use the `ipympl <https://github.com/matplotlib/ipympl>`__ backend
 (must be installed separately) which uses the **ipywidget** framework.
 If ``ipympl`` is installed use the magic:
@@ -280,25 +272,24 @@ If ``ipympl`` is installed use the magic:
 
 to select and enable it.
 
-If you only need to use the classic notebook you can use
+If you only need to use the classic notebook, you can use
 
 .. sourcecode:: ipython
 
   %matplotlib notebook
 
-which uses the `.backend_nbagg` backend which ships with Matplotlib.
-However nbagg does not work in Jupyter Lab.
+which uses the `.backend_nbagg` backend provided by Matplotlib;
+however, nbagg does not work in Jupyter Lab.
 
-GUIs + jupyter
+GUIs + Jupyter
 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 
-If you are running your jupyter kernel locally you can use one of the
-GUI backends.  The process running your kernel will show a GUI window
-on your desktop adjacent to your web browser.  However if you move
-that notebook to a remote server the kernel will try to open the GUI
-window on *that* computer.  Unless you have arranged to forward the
-xserver back to your desktop, you not be able to see or interact with
-the figure (if it does not raise an exception outright).
+You can also use one of the non-``ipympl`` GUI backends in a Jupyter Notebook.
+If you are running your Jupyter kernel locally, the GUI window will spawn on
+your desktop adjacent to your web browser. If you run your notebook on a remote server,
+the kernel will try to open the GUI window on the remote computer. Unless you have
+arranged to forward the xserver back to your desktop, you will not be able to
+see or interact with the window. It may also raise an exception.